ArenaNet has inked a deal with KongZhong Corporation to bring its popular and recently launched online RPG Guild Wars 2 to mainland China. The partnership is also apparently one of the biggest licensing transactions for a Western game in the Chinese marketplace. Under the terms of the licensing deal, ArenaNet has the option to buy up to 40 million of KongZhong Corporation's ordinary shares after the commercial launch of Guild Wars 2 in the region.

"We admire the dedication and passion of the Guild Wars 2 development team and believe this is reflected in Guild Wars 2 being highly anticipated around the world, including by China gamers," said KongZhong CEO Wang Lei lei in a statement. "I believe Chinese game players will be impressed by Guild Wars 2 unique gameplay which will bring truly epic, cooperative gameplay back to the MMORPG genre."

"We designed Guild Wars 2 to not only redefine the MMO category, but to appeal to a global audience," added ArenaNet co-founder and president Mike O'Brien.

Guild Wars 2 has already seen 1 million sales - even before it hit retails shelves, thanks to pre-orders of the game.